The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Abelia, botanically known as Abelia×grandiflora and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Rika 1’.
The new Abelia is a naturally-occurring branch mutation of an unnamed selection of Abelia×grandiflora, not patented. The new Abelia was discovered and selected by the Inventor in June, 2003 in a controlled outdoor nursery environment in Hempstead, N.Y.
Asexual reproduction of the new Abelia plant by softwood cuttings in a controlled greenhouse environment in Grand Haven, Mich. since May, 2004 has shown that the unique features of this new Abelia plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.